N - Rail Trail & Winery Ride

Hop onto the well maintained Ottawa Prescott Russell rail trail just south of the village of Navan for a delightful 7 km spin with alternating tree canopy coverage and scenic farmland views. Follow unpaved country back roads looping back towards Navan. Make sure to stop in at the two wineries enroute, enjoying their scenic surroundings and sampling vintages with grapes grown on nearby fields. 23.5 km

My ride

This route is “8-year-old-Anna-approved.” Travelling at the pace of our young daughter, we road 10 km of the Prescott-Russell Trail, and then a series of quiet, gravel roads. On a whim, we rode into the Vignoble Clos du Vully. Over nearly an hour, we chatted with the vineyard's owner, Jan-Daniel Etter, sampled several wines (sorry Anna, only water and a granola bar for you!), then filled my pannier with four of his wines. Yes, you can cycle and shop for wine at the same time in Ottawa!

With the afternoon fading into the evening, we opted to take a shortcut that would mean skipping the Domaine Perrault Vineyard and Winery. It was after 5 pm, and closed by then. Besides, my panniers were full, and Anna was tiring by this point. From Huismans Road, we turned right on Frank Kenny Road, and then retraced our route back to Navan using the Prescott-Russell Trail by which we came.